Eric Hacker Elects Free Agency
Right-hander Eric Hacker has rejected his outright assignment to pursue opportunities in Japan or Korea, reports Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). The Giants designated him for assignment earlier this week and then outrighted him to Triple-A today.
Hacker, 29, allowed six runs in 9 2/3 innings with San Francisco earlier this season. He spent the bulk of the year with Triple-A Fresno, posting a 4.01 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 25 starts and one relief appearance. Hacker has a 4.76 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in five Triple-A campaigns.
Outrighted To The Minors: Eric Hacker, Oscar Tejeda
Here are the day's outright assignments…
- The Giants have outrighted Eric Hacker to Triple-A, reports Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter). The 29-year-old right-hander was designated for assignment earlier this week. Hacker has allowed six runs in 9 2/3 innings for San Francisco this year, otherwise pitching to a 4.01 ERA in 150 1/3 Triple-A innings.
- The Pirates have outrighted Oscar Tejeda to the minors according to MLB.com transactions page. The 22-year-old outfielder was designated for assignment earlier this week after hitting .242/.292/.364 in 221 plate appearances for Pittsburgh's Double-A squad. They claimed him off waivers from the Red Sox in June.
Rosenthal On Clemens, Indians, Pagan
Here's a look at the latest edition of Full Count (video link) from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports..
- Roger Clemens says that he has no plans of making a big league return this season, but a lot of people with the Astros remain skeptical. If The Rocket plans on coming back, however, he'll have to do it soon. Houston begins a seven-game homestand against two non-contenders in the Cubs and Phillies on Monday. They'll be hosting the Pirates and Cardinals in their other homestand and they could not pitch him against those teams without compromising the integrity of the pennant race.
- Indians officials are leaning towards retaining manager Manny Acta as they know that a new manager won't make all that much of a difference. They also don't have to worry about placating their fans as they already rank 28th in MLB in home attendance. Of course, a poor finish to the season could change their minds about Acta.
- Giants centerfielder Angel Pagan will be coveted by several teams this offseason and his value to the Giants has only increased since the suspension of Melky Cabrera. Pagan is also similar offensively, from a statistical standpoint, to fellow free agent centerfielder Michael Bourn. Bourn is obviously a stronger base stealer, a year-and-a-half younger, and offers a longer track record. However, Pagan could be a decent alternative to the Braves star.
Giants Designate Steve Edlefsen For Assignment
The Giants have designated Steve Edlefsen for assignment, reports Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). The move clears a 40-man roster spot for Yusmeiro Petit.
Edlefsen, 27, has made 27 relief appearances for San Francisco over the last two seasons, pitching to a 6.75 ERA with more walks (16) than strikeouts (15) in 26 2/3 innings. The right-hander owns a 3.79 ERA in 38 relief innings down in Triple-A this year.
Outrighted: Ohlendorf, Rodriguez, Chavez, Correa
The latest outright assignments from around MLB…
- The Padres outrighted both right-hander Ross Ohlendorf and catcher Eddy Rodriguez to Triple-A, reports Jeff Sanders of The North County Times (on Twitter). San Diego designated the duo for assignment earlier this week to create room on the roster for some September call-ups.
- The Mariners outrighted Johermyn Chavez to the Double-A Jackson Generals, according to MLB.com. The Mariners removed Chavez from the 40-man roster earlier in the week after he posted .232/.339/.386 batting line in 288 plate appearances with the Generals this year.
- The Giants outrighted Hector Correa to Triple-A Fresno, according to MLB.com. The Giants had designated the right-hander for assignment six days ago.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Quick Hits: Berkman, Nationals, Royals, Pagan
The Orioles drew first blood in their big four-game series with the Yankees, slugging six homers en route to a 10-6 victory. Mark Reynolds hit two home runs, and has now enjoyed three multi-homer games against New York within the span of a week. Baltimore is now tied with the Yankees atop the AL East.
Here's some news from around baseball…
- If Lance Berkman retires, he tells Mark Berman of FOX 26 Sports Houston that he intends to finish his degree at Rice and be an assistant coach for the school's baseball team. Berkman said he is still leaning towards retirement but is focused on the Cardinals right now and will save a final decision under the offseason.
- Between Bryce Harper's play in center field and new leadoff hitter Jayson Werth's performance (a 1.014 OPS in 14 games as the leadoff man entering tonight's action), Amanda Comak of the Washington Times wonders if the Nationals may not need to focus on these long-time problems areas this offseason.
- The Royals should re-sign Jeremy Guthrie to a two-year, $15MM contract and non-tender Luke Hochevar, opines Rany Jazayerli of Rany On The Royals. Jazayerli believes Guthrie would pitch well in the AL Central while Hochevar hasn't been able to translate his decent advanced metrics into on-the-field success.
- Fangraphs' Dave Cameron cites Angel Pagan as "the most underrated player in baseball." Pagan has a .284/.336/.430 line with eight homers, 78 runs scored and 23 steals for the Giants this season. He is also a free agent this winter, and compares well with bigger-name free agent center fielders like Michael Bourn or B.J. Upton.
- Players and owners aren't close to a decision about limiting September roster sizes, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. We heard earlier this week that MLB was looking to change the rules for next season, but Rosenthal reports that since different teams deal with the September rosters in different ways, some clubs aren't willing to commit to the players' demands for minimum number of active roster spots for each game.
AL West Notes: Nathan, Profar, Greinke, A’s
No team in the American League has a better record than the Rangers (80-55) or the Athletics (76-59, tied with Baltimore and New York). Here's the latest from MLB's only four-team division…
- Rangers closer Joe Nathan obtained a $300K bonus when he finished his 50th game of the season Monday, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. Nathan will earn $300K if he reaches 55 games finished and the same amount for completing 60 games.
- The Rangers signed Curacao native Juremi Profar, Ben Badler of Baseball America reports. The 16-year-old third baseman is the younger brother of Jurickson Profar, who debuted with the Rangers over the weekend. The younger Profar has the tools to play third base and has shown some power from the right side, Badler writes.
- Angels right-hander Zack Greinke told Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times that he intends to wait until the offseason before talking too much about his next contract (Twitter link). “But I like it here,” Greinke said. “It's a great city, a great team." He is set to hit free agency after the season.
- The city of San Jose is toughening its stance toward those who oppose the possibility of the Athletics moving from Oakland, John Woolfolk of the San Jose Mercury News reports. The Giants have reason to oppose the possibility of the A’s moving to nearby San Jose and MLB has been slow to deliver a decision on the matter.
Giants Designate Eric Hacker For Assignment
The Giants have designated Eric Hacker for assignment, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). The right-hander saw just nine innings of work for the Giants this season, including one six inning start in April.
Hacker spent the bulk of the year with Triple-A Fresno, posting a 4.01 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 25 starts and one relief appearance. The 29-year-old has a 4.76 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in five Triple-A campaigns.
West Notes: Profar, Giants, Padres, Dodgers, Victorino
Here's a look at the latest out of baseball's two West divisions…
- In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney wrote about the Rangers calling up top prospect Jurickson Profar. He says the 19-year-old shortstop gives them flexibility going forward, allowing them to possibly market Elvis Andrus in a trade.
- Even though the August waiver trade deadline came and went, Giants skipper Bruce Bochy won't rule out a trade or acquisition in the coming days, tweets Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com. Baggarly adds that General Manager Brian Sabean continues to explore the market for players that can help down the stretch.
- The Padres are set to name cross-checker Billy Gasparino as their new scouting director, according to Keith Law of ESPN.com (via Twitter). Law, who worked with Gasparino in the Blue Jays organization, likes the move for San Diego.
- The Dodgers logjam in next year's outfield is a good problem to have, but still a problem nonetheless, writes Eric Seidman of Fangraphs. Recently, Shane Victorino said that he would like to return to Los Angeles in 2013 but scoffed at the notion of signing up for a bench slot. The Dodgers will likely need someone like a Victorino to act as an insurance policy for Carl Crawford or keep the seat warm for Yasiel Puig. Convincing someone of Victorino's caliber to sign up for a non-everyday role, however, will be challenging.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Giants Designate Hector Correa For Assignment
The Giants have designated right-hander Hector Correa for assignment, reports John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). The move clears a 40-man roster spot as rosters expand today. Correa, 24, has pitched to a 7.50 ERA in just 18 innings for the club's Triple-A affiliate this year while battling injury.